


The Glitch

by mizunoiro



Category: OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes
Genre: A lot of robotic shenanigans, Anniversary, Comedy, Detective Mystery (of sorts), Fluff, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Robotic Memory Loss, Shenanigans
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-31
Updated: 2020-02-06
Packaged: 2021-02-25 05:15:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 17,809
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22490668
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mizunoiro/pseuds/mizunoiro
Summary: Having a hive-mind isn’t exactly the same as having a perfect mind. Glitches in the system can happen, and you end up forgetting some small events, some things that were said, misplacing some small objects, such as, say, your disaster dads’ engagement rings on the day of their anniversary...
Relationships: Lord Boxman/Professor Venomous
Comments: 116
Kudos: 92





	1. Trouble in paradise

**Author's Note:**

  * For [PestoMayo](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PestoMayo/gifts).



“What do you mean you _lost the rings_??” Fink roared an inch from Darrell’s face, hanging off his cowboy jacket. At 12-17 years old, she was yet to hit a major growth spurt and so her stubby legs scratched at his chest.

“Eh-he-heh-heh…” Darrell laughed nervously and tried to look anywhere but at her. “T-there was a bit of a glitch, you see…”

“I don’t care if there was a nuclear meltdown!” Fink shouted and shook him. “That disaster of a man spent six months, _six months_ , six bloody, agonizing, cob-shelling months of crying at the sight of any chicken, orange, bath bomb or any other remotely Boxbutt-shaped object before I got him to so much as _consider_ learning how to make that cob-danged apology cake. So don’t you _dare_ tell me you lost his engagement rings! Their anniversary is today and he. _must. propose_!!”

Darrell whined and cowered at the tidal wave of righteous fury and the rest of the robots, awkwardly standing in the Boxmore lobby, started to surreptitiously look for a good place to duck in case they were next.

“M-maybe we can buy them new ones?” Ernesto suggested, trying to diffuse the minty-haired bomb.

“Boxboss’s was inlaid with natural pink nanoglorbs. Even if we could find another one like it in time, you’d have to sell Boxmore _and_ Darrell’s Acres to afford it.”

“Oh,” he said in a small voice.

“Not that I won’t make you do it if all else fails, mind you,” she growled at him.

But Ernesto was saved by the slightly vexed sounds of the ringtone “One Step Closer,” coming from Fink’s pocket. She immediately hopped down and picked up, making shushing motions to the robots.

“Hi, Boss! Yeah, yeah, of course everything is alright, why wouldn’t it be, of course it is. It’s so alright. The rings? Of course I have them. What? You’re coming over already? Y-yes, I remember that was the plan. Uh-huh. Uuuuuh-huh. Yup. See you at Boxmore!” Fink finished with manic cheerfulness which transformed into quiet homicidal ire as soon as she hung up.

“D-dear sister, let’s not do anything rash now…” Raymond stammered as they all took a step back from her.

“I’m not your sister yet, Raymond. And I won’t be unless all of you useless toasters start thinking _now_ and find those rings.” She said serenely, which was somehow more menacing than the shouting.

“I AM JETHRO…”

“He’s right, you know. We literally cannot remember anything after the glitch,” Shannon fidgeted. “The Boxmore antennas went down yesterday and all our memories couldn’t download properly to the hive-minds.”

“Oh, Cob’s popping popcorn,” Fink pinched the bridge of her nose like a certain high-level villain did. “So all of this because your danged _wi-fi_ went down? Well go and fix it then!”

“Mikayla…”

“Yeah. And when it came back on, the data was either lost or terribly scrambled,” Shannon added. “There was just some really weird stuff, like Jethro seeing lilies.”

“And there’s a whole bunch of me traveling this way,” Raymond added sheepishly, “and when all of us finally synced, I forgot why!”

“I don’t care! Why did you even need to move the rings from wherever you put them to begin with!” Fink asked the skies. 

“Well, why did you give them away to us in the first place!” Darrell bit back.

“Because school break started and I went to visit with Boss and Boxboss. And I was afraid your dad might find them, since I don’t even have my own room in his cabin. I told Ernesto that when I handed them over.”

“Mikayla?” Mikayla ventured.

“Because Boss practically lives with him now! In that stupid tiny cabin! You can’t hide a dirty sock there, nevermind super-expensive engagement rings! So he gave them to me instead.”

“I AM JETHRO. I AM JETHRO!”

“He has a point, you know. If we moved them once, we can retrace our thinking and do it again to find them!” Raymond said hopefully.

“Ugh, alright,” Fink conceded. “It’s worth a shot. Alright, so, imagine it’s yesterday and I drop by from school on my way to the cabin and hand you two incredibly expensive engagement rings for fear of your dad finding them. I remember seeing only Ernesto and Jethro at the time. What would you do?”

“I’d take the box and put it in the safe in my office, with the Boxmore documentation. That was before the glitch and I remember doing it distinctly,” Ernesto said, eye frowning in thought. “And nobody took them out before it happened.”

Mikayla and Jethro, who were the only other two permanent residents in Boxmore these days, nodded in agreement.

“And when did the glitch happen, exactly?”

“We’re not sure. We fixed the antennas this morning, after we found Vormulax sleeping in the old greenhouse and thus realized something must be off,” Shannon explained. “And we only found out the rings were missing when you arrived and asked for them.”

“Wut. Vormulax?” Fink stared at them in disbelief, momentarily sidetracked. “Doesn’t she live all the way in Neo Riot City now?”

“She does. When we asked her about it, she said we brought her here. We said we didn’t and she left, complaining how rude we were,” Darrell explained.

“So like… you all went to Neo Riot City for some reason?” Fink asked horrified.

They all shrugged.

“Argh! How can you not notice something as important as losing your memory!”

“Well duh,” elaborated Darrell defensively. “That’s the point of losing your memory, you _don’t remember_ stuff.”

Fink facepalmed.

“Well, I remember very well arriving with Shannon sometime yesterday afternoon, after finishing our talk-show,” Raymond said. “Darrell arrived last and boasted how he’d picked a fight with someone who told him his tractor was too slow to be on the highway.”

“It was a good fight,” Darrell nodded eagerly.

“And does anyone remember Boss calling around 5 p.m. to remind you that he and Boxboss wanted to spend the evening of their anniversary here? And to have a family dinner?”

Everyone shook their heads no.

“Oh! But since we knew they were coming anyway, we’d certainly decide to take the rings out of the safe. Father is still somewhat involved with running the company and he might find them there,” Ernesto said, poking a finger to his nonexistent mouth.

“Ok, so you were all here, Boss called at 5, where would you go hide the rings?”

“Mikayla Mikayla?”

“Hopefully!” Darrell said optimistically. “Ernesto, is there any helpful security footage?”

Ernesto’s eye glazed over for a moment and then he opened his projector.

“This is all of us leaving at 5:22 p.m.,” he said and projected the footage he had just downloaded from the factory security cameras. “You can see me here putting the ring box in Jethro’s storage space.”

“Is this the same Jethro?” Fink exclaimed, hopeful, and slammed open the nearest Jethro’s compartment. Jethro squeaked indignantly. “Empty. Can you check all the storages of all the Jethros?” 

“I AM JETHRO,” Jethro said and whirred for a bit. “I AM JETHRO…”

“All of them are empty. And yes, this is the same Jethro, number 2501,” Ernesto repeated sadly. “I suppose this rules out Mikayla’s theory that the rings are still in Boxmore. We’re clearly not just going for a walk with such expensive things on us.”

Everyone sighed sadly.

“We also have footage of Jethro returning alone with… a lilypad on his head?” 

They stared wide-eyed at the small robot who shyly rolled back and forth on his tracks.

“Wait, it gets weirder. Here are Raymond and Shannon returning with an unknown man in what I’d say is a sailor’s outfit and shutting themselves in Shannon’s old room, where there are no cameras. The man leaves alone and disheveled only at 8 a.m. the next day, today.”

Everyone stared scandalized and blushy at the two, who vehemently shook their heads no.

“And here are Darrell, Mikayla and Vormulax singing “Runaway Train,” as far as I can read Vormulax’s lips. This one’s from 3 in the morning. And that’s all of the unusual activity all the way until we found Vormulax this morning.”

“Heeey,” Fink squinted. “And where are _you_?”

“Oh,” squeaked Ernesto, eye glazing over once again as he reran through the footage. “I… I didn’t return! Oh my Cob, _where am I_?”

“Hey, hey! No panic! You’re here!” Fink shook him. “Check where all of you are. Maybe one of you is still with the rings?”

“Erm…” Ernesto’s eye stayed glazed for a while this time while everyone waited with bated breath. “Ernesto 2501 has just uploaded a strange partial memory… We’re all at the bank, the alarms are blaring, there’s a group of heroes running at us from up the street… we run… the heroes go after Jethro because he’s the slowest runner, no offence, Jethro, and I happen to be the one nearest to him… and then the memory ends.”

“Oh Cob’s mighty shank,” Fink facepalmed. “Don’t tell me you decided to rob a bank yesterday?”

“Mikayla…”

“Yes, Boxmore is doing fine, we didn’t need to! Maaaybe we wanted to withdraw? Or, maybe, we wanted to buy some presents for dad for his anniversary?” Shannon suggested brightly.

“You got out at 5:22. The bank would have already been closed by then,” Fink said. “And remember the ala- Oh Cob!”

“What? What?”

“Maybe at some point you realized you lost the rings and tried to rob it to buy new ones!?” Fink stared at them. They stared back.

“And when we failed… Shannon and I hooked up with a sailor, Jethro went for a swim, Darrell and Mikayla went to NRC and Ernesto… Whatever happened to Ernesto?” Raymond asked skeptically.

“Agrh! Whatever! Let’s go to the bank now!” Fink said and turned on her heels decisively.

“Huh? What for?” Darrell asked.

“To see if anyone there knows anything! Maybe the heroes are still hanging around! Maybe you’ll remember something! How do I know?”

“We have to find me first! I’m lost!” Ernesto was still panicked.

“I AM JETHRO! I AM JETHRO!”

“Uhm, he does have a point, he’s the last one who had the ring, we should trace him first,” Shannon agreed.

“No, let’s find Vormulax! She must have been with us the whole night! We must have told her _something_!” Darrell exclaimed.

“Well, if anything, the same goes for that sailor too, and he’s not a known villain and therefore, more trustworthy!” Raymond tossed.

“BANK! NOW!” Fink roared, and everyone trooped out at top speed.

—-

Venomous ended the call with Fink and returned to the bedroom, where Boxman was packing a small suitcase for both of them.

“Fink says she’ll meet us at Boxmore. She seemed kind of… occupied with something.”

“Ok. I really want to go earlier and take a look at those antennas. It’s rare for them to go down and Ernesto was kind of dodgy about what happened. What has he been doing with Boxmore, honestly!” Boxman fumed a bit and then gave him a careful look over his shoulder. “But are you sure you still want to stay the night there? It’s alright if you’d rather we went to a hotel. Or… or anything else, really.”

“What are you talking about. It’s the anniversary of our getting together and moving in Boxmore. Spending it there and with the family perfect.” And to make his point further, he pulled Boxman to him and gave him a kiss on the forehead.

“He-heh, you spoil me,” he giggled shyly. “I know I officially retired, but I still keep going back to Boxmore all the time. I know that Ernesto and the others can take care of stuff without me, like those antennas, but I still want to check how things are going. And you always indulge me, and tag along and everything. Even on such a special date...”

“The date isn’t special only for the two of us, you know. A lot of things happened because I moved in Boxmore with Fink. And we haven’t seen the whole family together in forever. Plus, you’d have more fun tinkering on those antennas than in any hotel I can pick. I’m sure it’ll be great.”

“Ok,” said Boxman and cuddled in Venomous’s chest. Then he looked up, one cheek still squished against him. “Just promise me you won’t get mopey like every anniversary?”

“Erm,” he laughed nervously in answer and shrugged charmingly. 

“That good old villain charm hasn’t been working as well as you think,” Boxman said and gave him a one-finger poke. “I’m onto you, you know. You’re having _those_ thoughts again. And there’s no need to.”

“Boxy...” he sighed and propped his chin on top of his head. “Alright, I’ll try not to let them get to me.”

“I love you, you know,” Boxman said, looking up at him.

“Love you too, Boxy.” He bopped his nose. “Now let’s get going. Oh, and remind me to drop by the bank, please.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Comments are very welcome! I'd love to hear what your favorite part of this chapter was! Or what you think will happen next! Or what you had for dinner last night! Or a keyboard smash, really!


	2. Trouble at the bank

“Well, it’s the bank alright,” Darrell said for lack of anything else to say.

“Suuure is,” Raymond agreed.

“Yup,” Shannon confirmed.

“It’s closed,” Fink observed.

“But it’s not a bank holiday…” Ernesto scratched under his tophat.

“Mikayla?”

“Yeaaaah, you have a point, it’s probably our fault. Somehow.” Shannon flinched.

“I AM JETHRO. I AM JETHRO?”

“No, it’s probably not safe for us here, but where else can we find someone who knows what happened?” Raymond said with irritation and looked around. None of the passers-by seemed to pay them any attention.

“Mikayla Mikayla Mikayla?”

“Good question, that. How come we ran? Why didn’t we fight those heroes?” Darrell looked around too, as if he expected the united heroic masses of the whole Neutral Zone to be lurking in the bushes around the small bank plaza.

“Why don’t I go and ask around, and you hide or something? In case someone does know what happened, they wouldn’t know _me_.” Fink said, also looking around. “Oh, and look who’s coming our way,” she added, spotting another colorful group coming from up the street.

The robots trooped to the nearest outdoor cafe and tried to stay inconspicuous while Fink plastered on her best fake smile and went to intercept the incoming enemy.

“Hey there, just in time!” Fink chirruped. “Are you guys local? Can we ask for some directions?”

The group of heroes looked her over, taken slightly aback by being spoken to first.

“Are those robots with you?” A buff tigeress-themed hero in, _of course_ , a spandex outfit left the group and approached her.

“They sure are!” She answered cheerfully and then leaned in conspiratorially. “A couple of TV celebrities and their posse, they’re here to tour the city, see the sights.”

“And you’re the guide?” The tigeress-hero asked doubtfully, looking at her rather average middle-to-high-schooler-kid-going-through-a-phase getup. “So how come you need directions?”

“Just making some extra cash during school break, you know. Can’t blame a girl for lying slightly on her resume about her knowledge of the city, eh?” She shrugged with disarming innocence. 

“Lying is bad,” the hero said dutifully, but then she gave up and relaxed. “It’s just,” she sighed, rubbing her neck, “there was this group of crazy robots yesterday who broke into the bank. And that’s our territory! We were supposed to protect it, and they just went and sliced up the door and got in!”

“Huh? Looks very not-sliced to me?” Fink said casually, patting her striped arm in fake commiseration. She wasn’t much older than Fink herself, she noted.

“Fixed it first thing in the morning. Bank people said that nothing’s missing, but still, we’re patrolling, just in case.”

“Ah. And what happened to the robots?”

“Escaped. We’re waiting to see if they return.”

“Did you get a good look at them?”

“Uuugh… sure,” the hero said, shifty-eyed.

“Good, good.”

“Well, anyway, what did you want to ask?”

“Where can we find…” Fink sought for something, anything, that could be helpful to their real investigation. “Some sailors?”

“Sailors?” The hero looked at her completely confused. “The nearest port is all the way in Sunshine City. I doubt you’d find any in Lakewood, unless they’re on holiday or something. Sorry.”

“It’s ok, I’ll think of something. Well, happy lurking then!” She said, waved goodbye and sped off to the now ice-cream-eating robots.

“Well?” Ernesto asked. “Did they get me?”

“No. And you didn’t steal anything from the bank either, apparently. What in the world were you doing there?”

Everyone shrugged and Raymond’s phone rang. He frowned at the caller ID.

“Someone named… LED Zeppelin is calling me? Why do I even have this in my contacts?”

“Do we care?” Shannon rolled her eyes.

“I don’t know anyone from Led Zeppelin! It’s not even my music genre.”

“Focus!” Fink shouted. “We need to- Aw, poop,” she finished when her phone also rang. “Yes, Boss! Nope, don’t need you to pick up anything. No idea. I… Iiiii… may be a bit late. M-met some friends from school. Yup, sure. Yup, I’ll be on time for _that_.”

“Did they arrive at Boxmore?” Darrell asked.

“Not yet. Now…”

“Wait, how are we going to explain we’re not there?” Shannon gasped suddenly.

“Mikayla?”

“Yes, _you_ are, but all the other Darrells are busy with harvest on the farm,” Darrell explained worriedly.

“The other Shannons aren’t doing anything much, but it’s a bit of a drive to get another one here…”

“And the rest of the Raymonds are playing a gig all the way in another city. Well, except the ones that are on their way here, for whatever reason.”

“Huh? Is it NRC? Maybe that’s where Mikayla and I went last night?”

“Sunshine City,” he shook his head.

“Oh! That’s where sailors come from!” Shannon exclaimed. “And we came home with a sailor!”

Raymond pressed his lips and did some mental calculations. “I don’t see how we could have gotten him here between 5:22 p.m. when we left Boxmore and 1 a.m. when we returned. Unless the Raymond who went out and the one who returned are different Raymonds and one came all the way from SC.”

“Oh Cob’s cobalt cobnuts, this is giving me a migraine,” Fink pinched the bridge of her nose.

“Wait!” Shannon shouted and jumped. “This is it! We ran because there’s only one of me, Darrell and Raymond here and we couldn’t risk getting destroyed!”

“Wow…” Fink blinked in surprise. “That actually makes sense.” Everyone nodded.

“Ok, we’ve got this!” Darrell enthused. “So imagine we’ve just sliced in the bank! And-”

“Shushhhhh!” Fink clamped a hand on his mouth. “Do you want everyone to know that?” She asked and pointed with her eyes to the group of heroes still lurking not very inconspicuously in a bush nearby.

“Oh. Sorry,” he said and tried again, more quietly. “So we did whatever we did to the bank, and the heroes chased us. We three couldn’t get destroyed _or_ captured because we’d miss the family dinner either way. Where would we go? Especially you, Jethro?”

“I AM JETHRO…”

“Ok, fine. Ernesto, where would you go, with Jethro behind you?”

“Uhm… the heroes came from up the street, so I’d go down.” He shrugged at the unimpressed looks he got. Then everyone looked towards the far end of the small plaza, sloping gently downhill.

“Huh. Will you look at that.” Fink said. “There are only two streets going out that way.”

“And one has stairs!” Shannon exclaimed. “Ernesto wouldn’t run that way because Jethro can’t follow him.”

“Let’s go!” Fink said and they all ran down the street with no stairs.

—-

Venomous parked his shiny sports car at a snug little parking lot not far from the police station nearest to the bank while Boxman stretched.

“Hey, PV, do you want to get an ice-cream or something after you’re done at the bank? There’s a nice little cafe on the other side of the bank plaza, if I remember right.”

“Why not,” he agreed. “And then we can do some shopping. Fink said she doesn’t want anything in particular, but I still think it’ll be a good idea to get something for everyone.”

“I’m sure they don’t expect it,” Boxman said as they got out of the car. “If anything, I wouldn’t be surprised if _they_ got something for _us_ , what with Fink being so evasive today.”

“You heard her,” Venomous said very nonchalantly. “She just met some friends.”

“Uh-huh,” Boxman said and they walked the rest of the way in silence, enjoying the warm weather.

“Hey! That’s Boxman!” Someone shouted from a bush and before the two villains knew it, a bunch of young enthusiastic heroes were on them. “He makes evil robots, doesn’t he!? He must have sent them to attack the bank!”

“Wha!?” Boxman squeaked. “I’m retired! Hey! Watch where you’re pointing that!”

“Stay away from him,” Venomous hissed as he kicked the gun from the buff tigeress-themed hero’s hand, dodged a blow, caught the offending fist and threw the hero back at her friends.

“Aaah! And that’s him! That’s Professor Venomous! CATCH HIM!”

_BOOM!!!_

“I may be retired,” Boxman said, twirling happily his pocket detonator and poking with his foot the charred, moaning heap of smoldering heroes, “but I’m not about to be beaten by some toddlers in spandex.”

“What weird kids,” Venomous said and walked all over the heap without giving them a second thought. “Oh, Boxy, look. The bank is closed.”

“Oh. Will an ATM do? There’s one next to the police station.”

“Why not,” the other villain said, walked over the heap again and the two of them strolled back to where they had come from.

—-

“Was that an explosion?” Ernesto stopped and listened, turning to look behind them.

“Forget that. Do you see what I see?” Raymond asked, sounding quite amazed. “This is actually working!”

They all stared at the rather romantic wishing fountain in the middle of the square. It had water lilies and more importantly, lilypads floating in it. Then they all stared at Jethro.

“I AM JETHRO,” he said and shyly rolled back and forth on his tracks.

“Mikayla?”

“Good question,” Darrel said and approached the fountain. The basin walls reached up to his hip. “And also, how? This thing is tall.”

“What!” Ernesto said indignantly when everyone looked at him. “I didn’t dunk him in!”

“And how would you know?” Fink asked suspiciously.

“You there!” Someone shouted behind them. “Don’t move! Hands up!”

They all turned around, hands pointedly down, and lo and behold, there were two policemen running towards them.

“You! What are you doing here! You were in the cell just now! You got arrested only yesterday!”

“What, me!?” Ernesto was shocked. “Me! I would never!”

“That was his evil twin!” Fink cut in. Both policemen and robots gave her unimpressed looks. “Anyway, we’re here for the robot you arrested yesterday. Take us to him!”

“Why? Would you like to pay bail for him?”

“Of course we do!” Ernesto, the proud owner of a successful business, exclaimed indignantly. “And we insist on hearing what he was accused of doing to merit an _arrest_!”

\---

“Huh? PV, is that...” Boxman stopped and stood on tip-toe, looking over the pedestrians. “Is that Ernesto?”

“Where?” Venomous asked and popped his head from the ATM’s cabin.

“No, lost him… I thought I saw his tophat near that fountain.”

“What would he be doing there?” Venomous waved his hand dismissively. “Now what presents do you want to buy for the robots?”

“Wait, no, that’s definitely Darrell’s stetson. I know it, it was a gift from Fink!”

“Box, wait! I’m not done here! Boxy, wait for the cash, if not for me!”

“Grrr! What did we say about self-depreciation!”

“Anything to get your attention, Box~”

\---

By the time the two older villains reached the wishing fountain, the two Ernestos were hugging each other in the police station while Shannon and Raymond were signing autographs and taking selfies with anyone in uniform who’d ask. Having them there significantly helped getting the terrified robot out.

“So why did you even arrest him?” Fink asked while the two Ernestos were filling out the release forms.

“We caught him bathing in the wish fountain. It’s strictly forbidden. And on top of that, he seemed to be picking the coins from the bottom.”

“I would never!” Ernesto exclaimed.

“You’d better not!” The policeman bit back. “They’re scooped out twice a year and go to charity. You were literally stealing from babies!”

“Babies! I would _never_! I’m a villain, not a monster! It’s what father always taught us!” Ernesto exclaimed again with even more distress, eye shimmering with tears. “Oh, Ernesto 1337, you _must_ believe me!”

“Of course I do, Ernesto 2501.” He hugged… himself? “It must have been terrifying powering on in that dingy cell and not remembering how you got there!”

“It was, Ernesto 1337! I knew why I got there when I got there, and then I synced with the hive and suddenly I didn’t know anything! Not even where my-my-my tophat is!”

“That’s truly terrifying,” Ernesto 1337 said.

“Weeeeeird,” the policeman mumbled and inched away.

“Hey, and were there any heroes when you arrested him?” Darrel asked.

“No, no heroes. My colleague said he saw someone else who was probably with him, but they were no hero. They escaped.”

Darrel just hummed.

“Let’s get out of here before we start getting marriage proposals,” Raymond shout-whispered then, getting away from the small crowd of excited policemen.

As soon as the bail was paid and profuse apologies and heartfelt goodbyes were had, the Voxy bunch poured out on the street. Raymond’s phone had been ringing for some time.

“Don’t tell me it’s LED Zeppelin again…” He made to hang up, but then startled. “Oh, no… it’s coach!” He shushed everyone. 

“Hiiiii! Yes, we’re fine! Erm… Nooo, of course we’re not anywhere near the bank, why would we be?” He looked around panicky. Everyone started trying to give him hints by wild gesticulation. All they managed to do was mostly to look like upset ducks, though. 

“Ooooh, you’re here, I mean, _there_?” Everyone gasped quietly, looked around and dragged Raymond to the nearest cover. 

“Well, actually, coach, you see… we… may be a bit late… Why? Ehm… no particular reason. No, really. Uh-huh. No, we’ll be in time for dinner. Erm, apropos of nothing at all, would stepfather happen to be with you? Yes? Ah, no, no reason at all. Sorry, coach, I have to go now, bye!”

He hung up and collapsed theatrically in Shannon’s arms.

“Very suave,” she said sarcastically and dropped him.

“Argh! What are we going to do!” Fink fumed. “We’re running out of time! And this was another dead end!”

“Hey, hey, listen,” Darrell, who had been uncharacteristically quiet, suddenly waved his arms. “Why didn’t the heroes catch up with Jethro and Ernesto, what with Jethro being, well, no offence, Jethro, and with Ernesto stopping for a bath, for whatever reason? Not even the police saw them! And that fountain isn’t all that far from the bank!”

“That’s… a very good question, actually.” Fink stared at him. “Why?”

“Because we split up!” Darrell exclaimed to a chorus of ooohs and aaahs. “Think about it! Ernesto and Jethro with the rings take the easy road and the rest of us run downstairs, drawing the heroes after us. It’s perfect!”

“I AM JETHRO!”

“Everyone, back to the bank! And then down the other street!” Darrell shouted and made to run that way, only to be grabbed by half a dozen hands and dragged back. “Er, right. We wait for a bit and then head that way, _very, very stealthily_.”

—-

“Boxman,” Venomous hissed portentously. 

“Erm. Yes. Those would, in fact, appear to be the children. Oh, look, and there goes Fink, too.”

“Are you sure Raymond didn’t say anything that explains _that_?”

“What could Raymond possibly say that would explain six grown-up robots crawling on all fours down a drainage ditch in the middle of the city? I mean, I know that Fink likes sewers, but...”

“Boxman, they’re clearly trying to avoid _us_!”

“Yeah...” Boxman said contemplatively. “Normally, I’d go say hi anyway, but they seem so keen on it. It’d be a shame to catch them.”

Venomous didn’t say anything. He just squeezed his fists.

“Hey, PV,” Boxman pulled his sleeve. “Talk to me.”

“Raymond asked if I was with you, right?” Venomous got out through gritted teeth.

“And?”

“They’re… not trying to avoid _both of us_.” He said with a tone that made Boxman frown.

“PV,” he said sternly. “Don’t be silly. They’re not trying to avoid you.”

“Box-”

“They don’t hate you, PV,” Boxman said. “ Plus, Fink is with them! Surely, you don’t think _she_ is trying to avoid you?”

“I suppose not,” he admitted and willed his shoulders to relax.

“I’m sure they have what passes for a perfectly good explanation. And you promised to try not to get mopey. An anniversary is meant to be a happy occasion, you know.”

Venomous looked at him, biting his lip. Boxman took his hand.

“There’s just so much to remember,” Venomous said quietly.

“And it’s all in the past,” Boxman said and pulled him down for a kiss. “Let’s go shopping and head to Boxmore, shall we? And let’s leave the kids to… er... bond. I’m sure they’ll sort themselves out and be back at Boxmore before we are!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Comments are welcome! I love love love hearing about what parts of the fic made an impression on you! They're usually never the ones I expected, so it's fascinating to know! Please tell me about it!


	3. Trouble in the Bot’s Burrow

The Voxy bunch reconvened about half an hour later, after having run several times up and down the street, interrogating shopkeepers, pedestrians, cafe owners and one granny on a bench. Nobody owned up to having ever seen the robots.

“Now what?” Fink asked, hands on her knees, wheezing gently.

“I say we go sit down somewhere and go over what we know again,” Ernesto said. “Besides, Ernesto 2501 has had a terrible shock, he needs a break!”

“He doesn’t remember what the shock even was!” Fink shouted. “You just want an excuse to be lazy! If this proposal fails because of you, I swear to Cob’s entire cornstalk I’ll-”

“Shushhhhh,” Darrell picked her up from behind in a tight hug. “It’s alright, it’s Ok, we’ve got this, it’ll be alright, caaalm down,” he cooed and went on cooing for a while.

To everyone’s utter shock, Fink’s righteous anger simmered for a bit and then died down harmlessly, until she finally mumbled “Fine, just let me down” with a pout.

“ _One_! drink, and we only talk about the rings,” she said and stomped towards a nearby pub whose sign proudly read “Bot’s Burrow - pub and hotel for the mechanically inclined.”

“Mikayla?” Mikayla asked in a whisper after hopping on Darrell’s shoulders from atop Jethro’s head. “Mikayla Mikayla!”

“I learned this trick on the farm,” he whispered back. “It’s how I whisper to my sheep when they get too nervous before shearing. Not. A. _Word_. You hear me?”

“Mikayla Mikayla!”

Ahead of them, Fink opened the door to the pub and froze on the threshold, staring at the utter charred chaos and desolation that was the former interior of the place. Even the roof had caved in, and a few people, two of which in waiter’s uniforms, milled about the place. Fink gulped and stepped in, despite her bad premonition.

“Heeey,” she pulled the apron of one of the waiter-looking people. “What happened here?”

“Oh,” he turned and looked at her and the rainbow of robots piled at the door. To their relief, he didn’t seem to recognize them. “Sorry, we’re closed. Some crazy robots got drunk here yesterday and exploded the whole place.”

“Crazy drunk robots that explode,” Fink gulped, going even greener than normal. “Let me guess, you weren’t on shift when it happened?”

“No, but if you like, you can talk to our manager over there. She was here.” He pointed to a slender cyborg talking to someone on the phone.

“N-no need to! We’ll be going now! Good luck! And sorry!”

“Huh? Sorry for what?”

But Fink was already pushing the robots out the door.

“You were _drunk_ last night!?” She growled through gritted teeth at them. “What’s _wrong_ with you people!!”

“Oh. That would explain the weird behavior,” Shannon said, blushing.

“And the lost rings,” Ernesto facepalmed.

“I AM JETHRO!”

“Mikayla!!!”

“I don’t know either,” Darrell cried. “We had no reason at all to get drunk! We don’t even drink!”

“I knew I recognized you!” Someone exclaimed loudly behind them.

They all jumped and stared in horror at the manager cyborg, who was right behind them at the door. Before they had overcome their shock and run, she lunged at Shannon and…

...hugged her.

“Wha…” Shannon said intelligently.

“You saved us all last night! Why did you go away before we could thank you properly!” The robot smooched Shannon’s cheek and hung herself on Raymond’s neck next. “And you too! All my patrons and staff are safe and sound thanks to you two! Not even a scratch on them!”

“W-we the mechanically inclined need to stand up for each other,” Raymond said dazedly, patting her back awkwardly.

“And me?” Darrell asked, beaming, and opened his arms expectantly. The manager gave him a measuring look.

“You, I don’t know.”

“Oh,” he drooped.

“I’m so glad you came back though!” She turned back to Shannon and Raymond. “Is there anything at all I can do to repay you?”

“Erm… How about you never mention this to anyone?” Shannon laughed in embarrassment. “Actually, we’re villains…”

“Ah! I see.” The cyborg winked at her. “Not a word will come out of me!”

“Also, we sort of came back because we lost something and…”

“Oh! Oh, _of course_! I have it!”

“You do!?” Everyone exclaimed, starry-eyed.

“Yes! I was shocked how anyone could forget something so important like that! Wait a sec, I have the box here, in the safe!” And she disappeared back into the ruined pub.

The Voxy bunch looked at each other and cheered. The two Ernestos hugged and cried a bit. Darrell sent a silent prayer and a promise to grow extra corn on his farm next year. Mikayla did a somersault. There was even a group hug.

“There you are!” The manager chirruped and handed Shannon the expensive-looking box she had brought from the safe. “And congratulations on the upcoming wedding!”

All the robots and Fink stared aghast at the box which contained... a wedding dress.

—-

Venomous stood in the Boxmore garage and contemplated the shiny red tractor parked next to his sports car while Boxman, Mikayla, Jethro and Ernesto were hugging each other.

“Hi, Professor!” Ernesto called cheerfully. “Do you need a hand with that?”

“Huh?”

“The shopping and your luggage.”

“Ah, no, thanks, Ernesto. Very kind of you to offer.”

“I AM JETHRO!” Jethro greeted him from a safe distance. 

“Hey, Jethro. I hope you’re well,” he replied also from a safe distance. Back then, Shadowy and TKO had gone the hardest on him and if the small robot had not made a run for it… Venomous gulped and took a deep, calming breath. Well, it didn’t bear thinking about.

“Mikayla,” Mikayla said and hopped on the hood of his car. They regarded each other silently for a moment.

“Hi, Mikayla. How’s life?”

“Mikayla,” she said and walked a small circle on the perfectly polished and shiny hood. Normally, his eyes would have been glued to her nails on the expensive car, but now all he could think of was how these claws had almost skinned him alive ten seconds after he had entered Boxman’s cabin for the first time together with his apology cake. He reached out a hand and let it hang in the air until Mikayla tentatively rubbed her back in it. She was forgiving. Like her dad. Venomous struggled for air.

“PV! Hey, PV!” Boxman grabbed his hand. “Not again! Come on, carry the shopping inside! You need to exercise those old villainous muscles!”

“Of course, Boxy,” he said and struggled to bring his mind back to the here and now.

After the kids had trooped back into Boxmore, Boxman pulled him aside and whispered, “Ok, if it makes you feel better, I’ll call Darrell right now and get to the bottom of this. Honestly, I expected them to be here before we arrived.” 

“That… that would be great,” Venomous admitted and snuck a small kiss on Boxman’s cheek.

—-

The Voxy bunch made for an interesting sight, sitting on the sidewalk. Fink was hugging her knees with her head in them and Shannon was patting her hair soothingly. The wedding dress was tossed in their feet with Mikayla curled on top of the box. Jethro whirred from side to side mediating between the two Ernestos, now quarreled, who were facing away and not talking to each other. Darrell was on the phone.

“Yes, daddy. No, daddy. Why is my tractor in the Boxmore garage then? Uhm… E-Ernesto must have bought me a new one! As a surprise! Oh… How do you know its registration number!? What! O-of course we’re not trying to avoid you! Well… Well, we _will_ be there! When? Erm… Soon? Ish? No, daddy. No, daddy. No, daddy, really. Yes, I know the family dinner is today. Yes, I know. Daddy, please! I-I have to go, daddy! Bye!”

He hung up and roared in frustration. Everyone gave him “you and me both” looks.

“Guys! Guys, listen!” Raymond ran over. “I went back to talk to the pub manager again!”

“Any leads?” Shannon asked without much hope, while Fink surreptitiously wiped her nose on her sleeve and looked up at him.

“She told me that we weren’t drunk! We were sitting with a man and talking about weddings, when a bunch of drunk robots started to pick on the man because he wasn’t a robot and that was a robot pub, according to them. So Shannon and I eventually decided enough is enough, and it all escalated from there. When it was over, we waited for the firefighters to come, and were there until pretty late. No rings ever made an appearance, as far as she could tell.”

“So no help then,” Ernesto said bitterly.

“Wait, but get this - we offered a place to stay to the man we had been talking to because his hotel room burned down. And he was _dressed in uniform_!”

“The sailor from the security camera footage!” The other Ernesto gasped.

“Mikayla!” Mikayla exclaimed, picking up the wedding dress box.

“Exactly, Mikayla! So I left my number with the pub manager in case he comes back looking for the dress!”

“Yeah?” Shannon asked, unimpressed. “And not because she was cute?”

Raymond shrugged charmingly.

“Mikayla! Mikayla Mikayla Mikayla Mikayla. Mikayla? Mikayla Mikayla Mikayla!”

“Uhhh, sorry, didn’t catch all that?” Fink said awkwardly.

“She said that only leaves her and me unaccounted for, now,” Darrel explained. “And she thinks I’m the person that policeman thought they saw with Ernesto. Nobody would have paid attention to her, she’s practically a cat in the dark.”

“Why would the heroes run after _them_ ,” Fink pointed at Shannon and Raymond, “if _you_ were the bigger group?”

“Oh,” Raymond said in a small voice.

“Oh _what_?” Fink growled.

“I maaaay have found a pair of fake tiger’s ears in Shannon’s room this morning… only I assumed they were Shannon’s?”

“No they’re not!” Shannon shook her head indignantly. “That’s not at all what I’m into!”

“What!” She added after seeing everyone’s despairing looks. “I’m really not!”

“Oh Cob on a stick, you stole that tiger-themed hero’s fake tiger ears.” Fink facepalmed. “It’s a miracle she didn’t recognize you before.”

“Weeeeee can mail them to the bank anonymously tomorrow,” Shannon said brightly. “They can return the ears to her.”

“So back to the fountain, then?” Darrell asked hesitantly. “That was the last place we found any clues. Do you think we can find anything else there?”

“I AM JETHRO.”

“Or why _I_ was in it, too.” Ernesto added.

“I AM JETHRO! I AM JETHRO!”

Everyone gasped in horror.

“In the _fountain_?” Fink grabbed him by the dome and shook him. “You dropped natural pink nanoglorb rings in a cob-forsaken _public_ _fountain_ where _anyone_ can pick them up??”

“Well, not _anyone_ , per se,” Ernesto 2501 mumbled sourly.

“He said might! _Might_ have!” Darrell ran to the rescue. “It’s worth checking out. Come on.”

\---

Venomous excused himself while Boxman decided to go debrief Ernesto about the antenna mishap and dialed Fink. She had been evasive enough before, but maybe she could at least explain why the robots were acting so strange. That last call with Darrell had _upset_ his Boxy, for Cob’s sake! That was _not_ alright!

\---

Fink’s phone rang. She took it out, sighed, and was about to answer, when a notification a lot more sinister than that caught her eye. 

“What’s that about...” she said and clicked to open the message instead. She frowned at the screen. 

“WHAT!!!”

Everyone took a step back at the sight of the purple energy suddenly emanating from her. And were those… spikes?

“Which. One. Of _you_. _Cancelled_. The _restaurant_.”

“Mikayla?”

“The restaurant. The cob-shelling and bloody expensive restaurant with a view of the whole of Lakewood that Boss booked for the proposal. The best and most exclusive restaurant with a two months’ reservation waiting list. Where we had everything organized for tonight. Which one of you _canceled it_.”

Everyone scuttered further back and shook their heads frantically.

“First the rings and now this? Is this a joke to you?” Fink oozed purple. “You all have your cushy places and siblings produced literally on a conveyor belt and your dad is actually sane, Cob bless him. None of you had to listen for an hour straight every day how cute, round and amazing your dad is. None of you had to endure all the cobbed crying. None of you have to explain on a weekly basis that disagreeing what brand of whole-grain cornbread is best doesn’t mean that your relationship is failing and you’re a horrible mostly-human being. But _I_ did. I did all of that. So tonight, we’re either having _one_ wedding proposal, or _six_ robotic funerals!” She ended in a roar.

“SIR YES SIR!!!”

—-

When it became clear that Fink was not picking up, Venomous sighed profoundly and not for the last time that day, wondered what in the world he thought he was doing. His anniversary blues (definitely _not_ his yearly guilt-trip, as Fink called it) was worse than ever, he wasn’t even sure if the family would even turn up, and Boxman seemed to be catching his case of the down-in-the-dump-ies.

He made his way up to the roof, where a giant tophat now presided in place of the snake. Most of the world didn’t know it, but his own old death-ray was installed under the tophat, as he had found out the first time he had come back to Boxmore to look for Boxman, only to be greeted with a small army of furious Ernestos, Mikaylas and Jethros and his own ray pointed at him.

“Oy, over here, PV!” Boxman shouted from atop an antenna’s platform. “Wanna come help?”

“Not my area of expertise, Boxy! Have fun!” He said, raising his voice a bit since there was a pleasant breeze on the otherwise hot roof. “I’ll catch some sun over here,” he added and leaned back on the safety railing, admiring the sight of an enthusiastic Boxman crawling, probing, measuring and poking the antennas.

The factory hummed below his feet, full of happy, busy robots, Boxman was right over there with him, and he knew that if he turned around, Lakewood Plaza Turbo and its bodega would stand just on the other side of the road, unchanged from the days when he had lived here. Somehow, miraculously, everything had gone back the way it was supposed to be, despite… him. Everyone’s best life, eh, KO?

“I’m so sorry for everything, Boxy,” he said quietly to the wind. “The rest of my life won’t be enough to make it up to you.” He rubbed his suspiciously slippery cheek. “If you’d have me for that long. Cob, I hope you do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Comments are still welcome. They're always welcome. Especially about the parts or things or lines or interactions that you liked! But keyboard smashes, emoji and dinner menus are also very welcome!


	4. Trouble at the tracks

By the time the Voxy bunch arrived yet again at the fountain, it had become clear that a nice gentleman that the restaurant people had assumed was Fink Venomous had called to cancel, which put only Shannon and Mikayla in the clear, although Jethro was also generally out of suspicion. It was also becoming clear that no amount of bribery, threats and cajoling on Ernesto’s part was going to bring back the canceled reservation.

“So, do you see anything?” Fink asked, leaning on the fountain walls as far in as she could.

“No,” everyone shook their heads.

“I AM JETHRO?”

“Oh! That’s a good idea! Anyone have a glorb scanner installed? I don’t use any on the farm…”

“Mikayla!”

Mikayla scanned the fountain slowly, all settings on max to detect the nanoglorbs. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, she found nothing.

“Mikayla… Mikayla Mikayla.”

“What do you mean my tophat! Where is it!” Ernesto 2501 exclaimed and climbed on the fountain wall. Everyone piled on him and dragged him back.

“Are you malfunctioning!? Or do you want to be arrested again?” Raymond hissed.

“But my tophat!” Ernesto cried.

“Mikayla,” Mikayla said and rolled her eyes. Then she hopped in the water, hidden from view behind everyone’s backs. She waded out with the wet and slightly misshapen tophat in a minute while everyone stared oh-so-covertly in the direction of the police station. She shook herself dry and handed the hat to an ecstatic Ernesto.

“So that’s what I was doing in the fountain,” the other Ernesto tisked. “Worth being arrested for.”

“Saaaay, Mikayla,” Darrell drawled. “If we really were here with Ernesto, and the police were coming from that way,” and he pointed at the street that led to the police station, “where do you reckon we would run to?”

“You traitors,” the two Ernestos mumbled in unison.

“Mikayla?” Mikayla suggested, pointing with her charger.

“That’s what I thought, too,” he said and turned 180 degrees. “Anyone know what’s that way?”

Fink and the two Ernestos whipped out their phones and opened Poodle Maps.

“A lot of stuff’s that way, actually.” Fink mumbled. “There’s a mall and cinema. Another, smaller bank. Lakewood Library. The industrial zone… Hm… Maybe you went to that other bank after you failed whatever you were trying to do at the first one?”

“No other banks in Lakewood were attacked yesterday or today, according to the news,” Raymond said after Poodling the local news.

“Oh, Cob in the heavenly cornfields!” Darrell gasped. “Do you think Mikayla and I went all the way to Neo Riot City looking for a bank??”

“Oh, no,” Fink paled. “We can’t get there and back in time for dinner.”

“I’VE GOT IT!!” The two Ernestos exclaimed in unison.

“What!?” Everyone jumped.

“You and Vormulax who lives in NRC were singing “Runaway Train” when you came home. And do you know what else is down that way? The _train_ station!”

“People still use trains?” Fink winced.

“It’s mostly cargo, but there are express passenger trains, too,” Ernesto said, Poodling something. “In fact, the night train from NRC arrives in Lakewood at 2:15 a.m., which is just enough time for Darrell, Mikayla and Vormulax to have made it back to Boxmore by 3 a.m.”

—-

As Boxman happily hung from a safety harness on one of the antennas, checking for any damage his kids had missed, he decided the routine work left him with the perfect opportunity to grill the Mikayla that had climbed up with him to assist. 

“Sooo, daughter mine,” he started. “Just between the two of us, what’s up with your siblings?”

“Mikayla...”

“Oh, don’t give me that!” He said, mock-sternly. “Why aren’t they here, yet? PV got worried that you’re all trying to avoid him, you know.”

“Mikayla Mikayla!”

“That’s what I told him. But you wouldn’t want your, er, my partner to _worry_ on our _anniversary_ , _right_?”

“Mikayla...” Mikayla fidgeted.

“You know I’ve always been trying to mediate between you children and him. I mean, I may not have been the best at that, but I’m trying. It’s touching how protective you all are of me, but I… well, I love the man. And he has been making amends, you know that.”

“Mikayla Mikayla Mikayla!” Mikayla said, panicked. “Mikayla. Mikayla...”

“Aw, thank you, Mikayla,” he said and petted her. “Alright, if you can’t tell me anything else, at least tell me if it’s something bad? You can do that, can’t you?”

“Mikayla… Mikayla Mikayla. Mikayla Mikayla Mikayla. Mikayla!”

“WHUOAT!!” Boxman squeaked and flailed in his harness. “And Ernesto didn’t tell me!? That’s it! I’m coming out of retirement and decommissioning him!”

\--- 

In the meantime, the Voxy bunch poured out of a taxi and into the train station lobby.

“Oh my Cob!” Darrell exclaimed.

“I AM JETHRO!”

“What, both of you remember being here?” Fink asked, unbelieving.

“It’s just a fractured memory without a time-stamp, but I’ve been here!”

“I AM JETHRO!”

“Ok, do you remember why? Either of you!?” Shannon enthused. “This is the second actual memory from yesterday that we have!”

“Uuuugh… no…” Darrell mumbled, rubbing his brain-dome and checking his databank for any stray uploads.

“I AM JETHRO! I AM JETHRO!!” Exclaimed Jethro and drove straight into a tall, clanging wall of… 

...combination lockers. 

“I AM JETHRO!!”

“Oh my sweet syrupy Cob!” Raymond exclaimed among the ensuing gasps. “He’s right! He absolutely nailed it! You went to the bank for their _deposit boxes_ to keep the rings safe until they were needed, and when you couldn’t use one, you came here for the station lockers!”

There was squealing and a group hug, to the entertainment of everyone else at the station, but then Shannon sobered up and suddenly asked:

“Wait. And what’s the combination? And which one is our locker?”

“Pffsh, who cares. We can blow them up!” Darrell suggested happily.

“And risk melting the rings and causing the nanoglorbs to explode? No way!” Fink growled. “Shannon is right, we need to know which locker is ours and the combination!”

Everyone suddenly drooped and started to look around for any hints.

“Maaaybe they’ll be amenable to a big generous donation for letting us slice open the locker, once we know which one is ours?” Ernesto, the owner of a successful business, suggested after no obvious solutions or locker combinations magically presented themselves.

“There should be a station master somewhere,” the other Ernesto said decisively. “Let’s try and ask them. Darrell and Vormulax singing at two in the morning should have drawn _some_ attention at least.”

So he trotted over to a guard, who in turn directed him to the ticket sales clerk who in turn showed him a tiny corridor to one side where the station master’s office was. 

While Ernesto was applying his diplomatic skills with the master, everyone sat on a bench in front of the gates and thought hard about their situation, or at least stared into thin air. Fink, Shannon and Raymond’s phones started ringing.

“It’s daddy,” Shannon sighed and muted the call without picking up.

“It’s Boss,” Fink sighed sadly and also muted the call, after some internal debate.

“It’s LED Zeppelin,” Raymond sighed the saddest and muted, too.

“And the sailor never called, eh?” Shannon sighed again. “What a cliché.”

“And neither did the cute pub-owner,” Raymond also sighed. “And there I thought we had a spark…”

“I really, really can’t remember using these lockers,” Darrel sighed, too, not wanting to be left out.

“Mikayla Mikayla,” Mikayla agreed. She also made a mental note to have her dad install a sighing upgrade for her as soon as they got him married off. _If_ they did.

“Wait!” Fink perked up and was suddenly hanging off Raymond’s feathery jacket lapels. “What if they’re the same person!?”

“The sailor and the pub-owner? I doubt it,” Raymond said with a wince.

“No, you toaster!” She shook him, wide-eyed. “LED Zeppelin and the sailor! Think about it! If you met someone in a pub that you liked so much that you offered them a place to stay at Boxmore, wouldn’t you want to exchange numbers!? And if you did, _of cours_ e the entry would seem unfamiliar to you _now_!”

The rest of the robots gasped and hurriedly took out their phones, checking their whole contact lists for weird new entries. One by one, they all shook their heads no. Only Darrell, oddly flustered for some reason, confirmed that he now had Vormulax’s number, but that was no mystery, so they left it at that.

“I’m calling him! Oh my Cob, this is so exciting,” Raymond enthused, dialing. There was a dial tone for quite some time, and then… “Oh hello! I’m Raymond, we met yesterday at the Bot’s Burrow. I was with my sister Shannon. Is this the right number? … It is!? … Yes, we have your wedding dress right here! … Yes, not a speck on it! … Yes, absolutely, and we need to talk to you, too. Can you come to, errr…” he looked around for ideas and Fink pointed to the cafe right outside the station. “...the cafe next to Lakewood Industrial Zone Train Station? … You can? … You’re _nearby_? That’s amazing! … No, thank _you_! See you soon!”

“Oh sweet cornbread, finally!” Shannon draped herself on his shoulder. “If we spent the whole evening together, we _must_ have told him what was really happening. He can help us!”

“I AM JETHRO!” Jethro rotated in a happy circle, the wedding dress box tucked neatly between his back and his exhaust pipe.

\---

“A glitch?” Venomous asked, bemused.

“Yes! And the malfunction must have gone on unnoticed for _hours_! Without the antennas, they cannot sync! And don’t get me started on the mess that turning the antennas off and then back on must have caused! The bucket-o-bolts wouldn’t remember a thing that happened to them!” Boxman fumed and shook his arms in exasperation. “Why didn’t Ernesto _say_ anything! If they’d just _called_ , I could have fixed it for them!”

“Maybe they were trying not to worry you?” Venomous offered doubtfully.

“Oh _now_ they decide to be all noble! I’m retired, not senile!”

“Do you think that a malfunction could explain the weird behavior of the robots we saw near the bank?”

“Hm… That’s a good question,” Boxman said and poked a talon to his lips. “There shouldn’t be any effect on their executive functions, especially considering Fink was with them, too. Oh! Maybe they lost something there during the downtime? They could have been searching that drain for something small...”

“Lost… something small?” Venomous said, suddenly going pale.

“Maybe something of Fink’s?” Boxman went on, burying the metaphorical knife deeper. Venomous broke in cold sweat.

“Whyyyy don’t we try calling them again, eh?” He said, already dialing Fink with shaky fingers.

“Alright,” Boxman agreed unenthusiastically. “I do hope they make it home soon. I was really looking forward to seeing everyone together...”

Venomous took his hand with his free one and gave it a reassuring squeeze. “It’ll be fine, Box.”

\---

“Hey everyone! Good news!” The other Ernesto reappeared with the station master, who was a lady of such exact same shape and color as Ernesto that the Voxy bunch thought they had found one more lost member. “The very kind station master reviewed for us the security camera records from last night. Turns out that you really used the station lockers, only the ones on the platform.”

“And as an exception, I’ll let two of you in to check your locker. The platform ones are more secure, but they are only for ticket-holders, so I need to accompany you,” the master explained.

“Oooh! So that’s why we bought tickets? And then what, just decided to use them?” Darrell looked at Mikayla, who shrugged. “Station master, did we say why we needed to go to NRC?”

“Hm, maybe you did to the ticket sales clerk,” she answered doubtfully. “But they’re not on shift today. And the security recordings are video-only.”

“Oh,” Darrell drooped.

“But it cannot have been very important because you never boarded,” she added.

“What!”

“Mikayla!”

“It’s all recorded, if you don’t believe me,” she said and adjusted her purple uniform hat. “You ran into a nice, horned… er… _entity_ on your way to the platforms and then all four of you sat on the benches and went to the platform cafe and talked and sung and whatnot until the security asked you to leave because you were starting to disturb the passengers.”

“Mikayla!” Mikayla said happily to Darrell, who nodded enthusiastically in agreement.

“Wait, all four of them? The security footage at home showed only three return,” Ernesto said.

“Hm, let me see…” The station master surveyed the group. “There was you cowboy, the, er, cat lady, your nice horned friend and… you.” And she pointed to Jethro. “You left first, though, some time after 8 p.m.”

“I AM… JETHRO?”

“Sorry, did you have _what_ on your head?”

“A lilypad,” Fink mumbled and raised her eyebrow. “Huh. That’s an interesting question, really.”

“What’s that slang for?” The station master leaned towards Ernesto conspiratorially. 

“Erm. Nothing. Err… A lot of things happened yesterday, master.” Ernesto shrugged.

“No, you didn’t have anything on your head. Only the cowboy gentleman had his stetson.” 

“Oh what a relief,” Ernesto sighed. “So I really didn’t dunk him in the fountain!”

“So where _did_ he get the lilypad?” Fink asked, bewildered.

“Anyway, I’ll allow Mr. Ernesto and one more person to come to the platform to open the locker. Who’s coming?” The master asked.

“Erm. Actually, we, erm, I would like to discuss with you a sizable donation?” Ernesto said with a question in his voice.

“Sorry? Donation to what?”

“Erm… pension fund? What other options do you have?”

“Perhaps it’s best if we go back to my office to discuss this in more detail,” the station master said frowning. Then she saluted smartly and the two of them retreated to the office.

“Miiiikayla Mikayla,” Mikayla said and everyone sighed.

“Why don’t we go to the cafe now?” Raymond suggested, checking his phone, just in case. “We can use a break, and our mystery sailor should be here soon.”

—-

After nearly biting Ernesto’s head off for hiding the extent of The Glitch, and taking a small tour of Boxmore with Jethro to take their minds off their wayward children who had apparently gone selectively deaf, Boxman and Venomous decided it was time for a short break. 

They sat in the old greenhouse with a cup of tea each. Ernesto had not discarded bioengineered products completely after taking over Boxmore, so there were still active experiments there. But it was also just a generally nice place to sit for a bit, with greenery and a pleasant view of the fields behind the factory.

Seeing Boxmore function so well had cheered up Boxman and he was ranting happily about some new type of robot he was consulting on and the specs he wanted it to have. Venomous just listened and looked at the other man. 

How was all this even possible? Why had someone as bright, amazing, smart, evil, forgiving, full of life and just… _perfect_ like Boxman ever taken him back? And was he crazy for imagining that he would want to _marry_ him on top of that?

Maybe Fink had lost the rings. Maybe the robots still hated him and avoided spending time with him. Maybe it was all just Cob’s way of telling him not to reach, once again, for things that did not belong to him… 

Venomous surreptitiously rubbed his eye and did his best to smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I know it's the middle of the fic, but feel free to comment here, too! Was there anything memorable in this chapter? Anything snort-worthy? Do you like trains? I'd love to hear about it!


	5. Wedding troubles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading so far! The second part of this chapter is taken from a wonderful short comic by Goosie which I accepted as headcanon as soon as I saw it. :) She kindly gave me permission to include the idea in this fic. You can find it here: https://goosieboosie.tumblr.com/post/188006219027 Go check out her art! It’s great!

The Voxy bunch had been sipping an assortment of juices and machine oils, Poodling lilypad sources within Lakewood and expensive restaurants that could organize an anniversary party on a short notice, and studiously ignoring all calls from their parents for some time, when a low, cheerful voice boomed behind them.

“Ray! Shannon! Good to see you!” The voice belonged to a tall fox-tailed man with a buzz cut and a wide, shining smile who seemed to be more or less Venomous’s age.

“Oh! Oh, hi,” Raymond panicked only a bit. “Nice to see you too, erm…”

“And I see you brought your family, too! Hi guys! I’m Goodfellow, the captain Shannon and Ray must have told you about!”

There was a round of introductions, during which Jethro returned the wedding dress, Fink received a big pat on the back full of commiseration, and which concluded with an awkward “Well you see, there was a bit of a glitch…” from Shannon, who then proceeded to explain what had happened.

“So anything you can remember from what we told you yesterday would be really helpful,” she finished. “Especially if we mentioned anything about their engagement rings.”

“Hmmm…” Goodfellow scratched his head. “Let’s see. We did bond over wedding stuff. You saw the dress I had and started talking about your father’s anniversary with his long-term partner and how it was today, and how you wanted his partner to propose…” Everyone nodded eagerly. “But then we switched to talking about my wedding. Looking back, that was kind of selfish of me, but you seemed interested enough. My fiancée and I had a quarrel, you see…”

“Oh,” Shannon said and patted his arm. “We’re sorry. Do you want to tell us again what happened?”

“Well, no, it’s fine, it wasn’t exactly a quarrel, but…” He sighed in fond exasperation. “Ok, I do want to tell you. She saw this dress in one wedding studio and she absolutely loved it. So I went there in secret and bought it for her.”

“Aw, that’s so sweet,” cooed Darrell.

“And then I brought it to her, and she was all happy and flattered and stuff, but then she said, but darling, I can’t wear it to the wedding. And I asked why not, I’ll be in uniform, you’ll be in the dress you liked, we’d be perfect!”

“Wow! Married in uniform, how dashing!” Raymond had pink hearts in his eyes.

“Right!? So then she said, but sweetie, I’ll be in uniform, too!”

“Oh! Doubly dashing!” Shannon chirped, also heart-eyed.

“But you don’t understand, I was shocked, I mean, ever since I was a little boy I’ve dreamed I’d have a bride dressed in all sparkling white!”

“That’s what you get for dreaming of getting married, of all things,” Fink offered in her own brand of sympathy. She, personally, had had enough of wedding troubles to last her nine lifetimes.

“Well, I’ll get my wish anyway, because next she said, but baby, calm down, remember I’m a fleet admiral, my parade uniform _is_ all sparkling white!”

Everyone stared in various stages of jaw-droppedness and starry-eyedness.

“So,” Ernesto coughed, “why did you quarrell then?”

“Oh, we couldn’t decide who gets to carry the bouquet, if we’ll both be in uniform! Say, will one of your dads have a bouquet!?”

Everyone managed to suppress a facepalm with various degrees of success.

“Anyway, so I was on my way to return the dress, but the shop was already closed, so I went back to my hotel. Our apartment is being renovated before the wedding, you see, while she’s away on a tour. That’s the same hotel that burned, where I met you guys, and, well… Glad to have met you. But I think this is all I can offer. Neither of you mentioned any rings. I’m sorry, I think I can’t be of any more use to you.”

“I AM JETHRO...”

“Yes, you tried anyway. Thanks,” Darrell agreed.

Everyone fiddled with their drinks, not looking at each other. Captain Goodfellow looked around the table, commiseration all over his face.

“Come on, guys. You seem like a really nice, united family. I’m sure your fathers will understand.”

Fink’s hackles went up. Darrell rubbed her back consolingly.

“Tell you what, I’ll go extra hard with the blimp preparation to cheer you all up! I’ll throw in some professional catering on board, too, how does that sound? It’s a short notice, but I’m sure I can do it!”

Everyone stared at him as if he’d grown a few additional tails.

“Oh. Huh. You don’t remember the blimp then, eh?”

“???”

“He-heh, sorry, sorry, you did tell me about your glitch. Allow me to reintroduce myself then - I’m Captain Goodfellow of the Law Enforcement Department’s heritage Zeppelin aircraft. It’s a type of big blimp, you know.”

“LED Zeppelin!” Raymond gasped quietly.

“Right,” Captain Goodfellow smiled. “And you asked me to give your two disaster dads, _your words not mine_ , a romantic ride on my airship for their anniversary. You mentioned their first date involved flying? Anyway, considering how you defended me in that brawl, and how you offered me a place to stay, and how well we hit it off... I promised you I would.”

“Ooooooh!” Oooh-ed everyone. Ooohingly. Then the good captain was buried under a robotic pile of squealing joy.

“Captain Goodfellow,” Fink drawled in the background, “do you remember if _this_ toaster,” and she yanked Raymond from the pile by his nose, “made a call to cancel a reservation?”

“Huh?” The captain huffed as he emerged and tried to get up. “Yes, why?”

“Raymoooonnnnddddd,” she growled and oozed purple again.

“D-dearest sister, let’s not-”

“I’m not your-”

“Wait, wait, kids,” Goodfellow intervened. “I think the idea was that a blimp was more romantic and memorable for a proposal than just a restaurant. And if you want me to organize the music, catering and all else extra well, I need to hurry. Let’s not fight, eh?”

“Ok, but only because that does sound very romantic.” Fink had to concede. “I guess I can forgive you, for now,” she told Raymond magnanimously while he scuttered away behind Goodfellow, just in case. “Captain, can you really do all of that until this evening?”

“Sure thing. We have an inspection from Congresswoman tomorrow anyway, so the crew and the airship are both in top-notch form.”

“Mikayla, and what are the Mikaylas in Boxmore reporting? What’s happening there?”

“Miiiiiikayla Mikayla. Mikayla Mikayla. Mikayla…”

“That bad, eh.” They all looked guiltily at each other, Jethro more than most. 

“So how’s this for a plan?” Fink went on. “I’ll go back to Boxmore, the Ernestos will sneak me in and arrange for me to talk to Boss in private, I’ll let him in on the change of plan, and then we all meet… where?” She asked the captain.

“The blimp’s at the airstrip nearest to LPD, but I can pick you up from anywhere with a big enough parking lot,” he explained. “And I mean a really big one, mine is an actual airship, not those small six-seater blimps used for advertising.”

“Oh Cob, for once we’re lucky. Do you know where Boxmore is?”

“Sure. How does 8:30 p.m. sound? I think I can get it all done by then.”

“Thank you,” Fink said and added pointedly, looking at the robots. “That will be way more than _most of us_ have done for this proposal.”

The robots fidgeted. Blushing and indignant mumbling happened.

“It’s all settled then,” Goodfellow said decisively. “I’ll see you at Boxmore at 8:30. Ray, call me if anything happens, alright?”

And with this, the Cob-sent captain waved goodbye and took his leave, wedding dress under one arm, already calling someone on his phone. The Voxy bunch stared at him with star-shaped eyes.

“Alright!” Fink exclaimed, for once hopeful. “I’m going back to Boxmore. You people get the rings from the station and _don't. lose. sight_. of them. I’ll see you again at the factory. We can still salvage this proposal!”

“Cob, yeah!” The robots exclaimed in unison.

—-

Jethro 1022 nonchalantly rolled by the car-wash-turned-robot-wash in one corner of Boxmore’s backyard. Boxman had installed it early in his parenting career when it became clear that no meager ordinary shower could keep all of his kids clean. A little after that, he had installed the incinerator, too. For the same reason.

Jethro surreptitiously looked around, which involved doing a full 360-degree turn in the middle of the open space, and then extended a manhole lifter to the sewer lid in the middle of the washing area. Fink sprang out before he had even removed it completely.

“Wow, it’s been such a long time since I’ve had a good run in a real industrial sewer!” Fink said happily and squeezed something grey from her hair. “Lead the way, Jethro!”

Jethro opened the back door to Venomous’s old greenhouse and lab, just behind him.

“...want to show me, Mikayla?” A familiar voice trailed away down the hall, together with claws scraping on metal and the sound of small feet stomping off. Fink recognized Boxman’s footsteps, which she was cursed to forever relate to the words “such adorable fluffy little socks, Fink! <3” She tried not to gag and snuck forward through the leafy cover.

She lunged at Venomous as soon as she caught sight of him and hung on his neck. “Heya, Boss! We have a surprise for you!” 

“Fink!? _Finally_! Why were you ignoring my calls? Where have you been?” He sniffed delicately. “Other than sewer-diving, that is.”

“The robots and I were, erm, doing something extra special for your anniversary! Boxman will love it!” Not that he had much of a choice, she thought to herself.

Venomous put her down and raised an eyebrow at the sight of her tail. It was twitching in that manner he knew so very well from questions such as “Fink, who broke this?” or “Fink, did you do your homework?” or “Fink, where is my portable death-ray?”

“No really!” She waved her arms when she saw the Eyebrow of Doom. “There will be live music, and, and catering, and flying, and everything. Perfect for a proposal!”

“Huh? But I already have an excellent restaurant booked. You know that, the reservation is in your name.”

“Pfffsh, restaurant, what a huge cliché. Now, a real blimp? That’s romance right there!”

“Blimp?” He stared at her dumbfounded, and then his eyes narrowed. “Is that why you and half of the robots have been gone all day? _You robbed a museum_?”

“Nope! This one’s fully operational and very fancy!” It had to be, right? “It’s an airship!” 

“Where did you find it?”

“You can say that it found us,” Fink said innocently. Her tail said a lot more. 

Venomous looked at her sceptically.

“It will be ready to pick us up from the Boxmore parking lot at 8:30 p.m. Which is fine! The robots will be there by then, too!” She waved her arms, and then gave him her best baby-mouse shimmery-eyed look. “Just imagine! The whole family! On an airship! Just like on your first date _that you ditched me to go to_!” Fink sweated. It had sounded a lot more convincing in her head.

Venomous looked at her expressionlessly for an infinite moment.

“Well, if you say so,” he heaved a sigh and ruffled her hair. “I’m sure you have planned it well.”

“Huh!?”

“Hm?”

“Y-you agreed that easily!?”

“To be honest, Fink, I… I just don’t have the energy to care about the venue right now,” he sighed again and pinched the bridge of his nose. “It’s our anniversary, and, well, you know how I get around those. So much to remember…”

“Oh Cob give me strength,” Fink mumbled under her breath. “Bossicide is out of the question. Until I start earning, at least.”

“What was that?”

“We’ve been through this a gazillion times already, I said. Boxman forgave you. Isn’t it high time you did, too?”

“I know. I just…” He sighed again and leaned on one of his old lab tables. “I think I may be making a mistake.”

“No you’re not,” Fink deadpanned.

“But… it was all because of me. We broke up because of me. I almost destroyed the robot children. And Boxmore. I kept things from him. I… there’s no end to the things I did to him. And still, he took me back.”

“Yes, I get it, he’s a cob-popping _saint_. Surprisingly many people around you are,” Fink growled. She had tried to be patient the first few dozen times she’d heard this argument, but her zen was wearing thin.

“So then what right do I have to ask him… to ask him… _that_. It’s too much to ask. Taking me back was too much to ask. I… I cannot do it.” Venomous whispered dramatically, fingers digging into the desktop.

“WHUOAT!?” Fink roared and hopped on the lab table. “What do you mean, _you_ _cannot_?”

“If getting married was something he wanted, _he_ would have asked _me_. He’s the only one who has any right to decide if and when we… we…”

“That’s why it’s called a marriage _proposal_ and not a marriage _order_! And of course he’ll say yes! He’s been dropping hints since forever! And his hints aren’t exactly subtle!”

“So have I. And he never took any of them.”

“Well neither did you, by the looks of it! One of you has to ask _first_!”

“I… I can’t. I can’t ask him to marry me.”

“Boss, no! Boss, listen to me!” Fink said through gritted teeth and grabbed his shoulders, shaking him a bit. “You _have_ to do it. Now. Today. You’re just getting cold feet. Get a grip.”

“Fink, you don’t understand…” he said to her left sock.

“Boss!” She grabbed his cheeks in her hands and made him look at her. “Do you remember that time I bought some oranges and you took one to make juice and then I went to school and returned six hours later and you were still sitting in the exact same spot I left you in?”

“You’ve done the shopping plenty of times,” he said, shifty-eyed.

“Uh-huh. And you were crying over the oranges because, and I quote, they look just like _him_ , Fink!”

“I… may have… gotten slightly emotional?”

“ _Six hours_!! You were so slightly emotional that I had to call KO for help! KO! I wasn’t that scared for or of you even when you were Shadowy!” 

Venomous shivered and folded in on himself at that. 

“And do you remember how KO also didn’t know what to do, so he had to call his mom for help! His mom! Carol!”

“Erm… he did?”

“And do you remember how she said she’d ask someone and call back, and then she did, and told KO to tell me to give you Ophiditranquil?”

“Wow. She did?”

“And when I checked, that turned out to be an anesthetic and sedative for snakes. You remember that!?”

“Errr…”

“And then I said to myself, cobble it all, and I gave it to you anyway!? You remember that!?”

“Erm. Fink…” he managed through tightly squeezed cheeks.

“Cos _that’s_ when I decided that I’ll either marry you off to Boxboss or die trying!!” Fink shouted. “He loves you, you love him, and enough is enough!!”

Venomous just gulped and stared at her wide-eyed and squish-cheeked.

“ _Capiche_!?”

He nodded vigorously.

“Good,” Fink said and released him. Then she smiled as if nothing had happened, hands on her hips, and gave him a once-over from her vantage point on the lab table. “It’ll be perfect, you’ll see,” she added happily. “The venue is amazing, all the family will be there, and the rings are ready to go whenever!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaah Fink is the master of pep-talks, isn't she!? XD This has to be my fave part of the fic, together with its end. I'd love love love to hear what you think! So comments are welcome!
> 
> And don't forget to check out Goosie's comic, too~ https://goosieboosie.tumblr.com/post/188006219027


	6. Above and below

“Mikayyyyyyyyla!?” Mikayla meawled and arched her back, charger straight up.

“You heard me! The rings are _not there_!” Ernesto wailed and dropped his head in his squished and ruined tophat.

“What do you mean, _not there_!?” Shannon shook the other Ernesto who said nothing, still in shock.

“I AM JETHRO??”

“Vormulax’s stuff. There was a book on how to grow _peach bonsai_! And what I assume were actual peach pits! And bonsai stuff like sets of tiny sheers and whatnot. And a fancy monogrammed bonsai dish. And books on gardening. Apparently Vormulax is really into gardening now!” Ernesto whined and went back to weeping in his tophat.

“Oh Cob’s evergreen cornfields, what a relief!!” Darrell exclaimed and collapsed back in his chair.

“Mikayyyyyyyyla!?” Mikayla hissed and arched her back at him, claws out.

“No, no, not like that!” Darrell shook his hands at the glares he was getting. “Ah, cob it, it’s easiest to show you. See?”

He took out his phone, poked it for a second and turned the screen for everyone to see. And sure enough, the contact list proudly displayed the entry…

_VORMULAX *peach emoji* *peach emoji* *applause emoji* *peach emoji*_

The stares turned wide and very scandalized.

“Because she’s into peaches! _Actual_ peaches!” He hurried to add, blushing. “Award-winning ones, by the looks of it!” Everyone squinted at him doubtfully. “What! Would I be showing you this otherwise!?”

“Mikayyyyyyyyla!” Mikayla hissed before anyone could explore the topic further. “Mikayla Mikayla Mikayla!”

“I AM JETHRO!” The indignant robot said and hid behind the not-crying Ernesto.

“He’s right, Mikayla,” Raymond said tiredly. “We’re all on edge, but it’s not Jethro’s fault.”

“Let me call Vormulax,” Darrell said. Everyone gave him the evil eye, accompanied by a couple of leers.

“Oh cut it out already! It’s not like that!” Darrell growled, pulling his stetson down almost to his nose in frustration. “I’ll apologize for breaking into the locker and see if I can learn anything!”

While he did so, everyone else took out their phones and opened their lilypad Poodle searches again.

“So if Jethro did have the rings all along, they must be wherever he got the lilypads on his head that we saw in the security recording from Boxmore,” Shannon summarized.

“Either that of Vormulax stole them, which I doubt,” Raymond confirmed.

“I AM JETHRO?”

“Yes, you were the first to return home,” Ernesto replied, “but that doesn’t mean much. The station master said you left around 8 p.m. And you returned home at ten-ish. For over two hours, you could have gone anywhere, even at your pace. No offence meant.”

“I AM JETHRO,” Jethro said magnanimously.

“Mikayla… Mikayla Mikayla?”

“Even if we did calculate all the places he _could have_ gone to, you’re the only one with a glorb-scanner installed. And you’d take like half an hour to scan just one park-pond,” Raymond said unenthusiastically. 

“The other Ernestos could bring the industrial scanner over?” Ernesto suggested.

“From under dad’s nose? All two and a half tons of it?” Shannon winced.

“Maybe call more Mikaylas over then?” Raymond suggested.

“Mikayla Mikayla…”

“What, only that many left? Yeah, coach’s bound to notice then. And who bought all the rest?”

“Mikayla.”

“Oooh, how cushy!”

“Well we have to do _something_!” The crying Ernesto wailed.

“Mikayla…” Mikayla offered consolingly and rubbed her back on his arm.

But it turned out that she was being overly optimistic because Darrell returned in a couple of minutes, clutching his phone and his hat like a shield.

“Nothing then?” Shannon asked, tight-lipped.

“After some shouting, she said we invited her to stay with us while she’s in town, and we said we’d invite her to the wedding, too, but we never mentioned any rings. She’s still hopping mad we forgot her in the greenhouse and then booted her out in the morning.”

“I AM JETHRO,” Jethro said and sadly rolled around on his tracks.

“It’s ok, buddy,” Darrell said. “We all messed up.”

“Fink will upload our hive-minds to her videos game and keep shooting us dead for the rest of eternity,” Ernesto 2501 deadpanned. 

“And dad will only be too happy to help,” Shannon said dazedly.

“And stepfather, too,” Raymond intoned.

Everyone took a moment to process the unspeakable vista of the future.

“Right,” said Ernesto 1337 decisively. “Let’s calculate as many places Jethro could have gone to as we can and get going. The rings are somewhere with lilypads, and we will find them!”

—-

At 8:15 p.m., a taxist of saintly patience and deeply unimaginative nature dropped seven very sad and slightly dripping robots at Lakewood Plaza Turbo, as close to Boxmore as they dared. Up ahead in the beautiful darkening evening sky, a gently blinking light had risen from the LPD airstrip some time ago and was approaching slowly but steadily like a beacon of the robots’ impending doom. They all sighed.

“So. We go turn ourselves in, then?” Raymond asked dejectedly.

“The only other option is preemptive self-destruct,” Shannon offered helpfully.

“I AM JETHRO…” Jethro said with all the guilt and sadness in the world.

“It’s alright, Jethro,” Darrell said and petted his dome. “Darrell's Acres is doing pretty well. Maybe after Fink sells it as compensation for the rings, there won’t be any need to sell Boxmore, too.”

An Ernesto sob-hiccupped. Mikayla hopped on his shoulder and rubbed her cheek in his in a gesture of commiseration.

“Maybe the dinner will go well and they’ll have a happy anniversary even without the proposal,” the other Ernesto offered doubtfully.

They all stood in indecision for a while longer, watching the approaching blinking light of doom. Life at the plaza went on around them in the incongruously warm and pleasant evening while darkness gently fell. They all sighed again.

“Fink probably has a point,” Raymond said quietly, staring at the impending blinking light. “At this rate, coach and stepfather are never going to get married.”

“Mikayla…” Mikayla objected unenthusiastically.

“It’s not, of course, but…” Shannon picked her up. “It’s not even the marriage itself. It’s like there’s this huge unsaid thing between them now and they just can’t get around to talking about it.”

“I AM JETHRO,” Jethro said quietly. Well, relatively speaking.

“That’s very generous of you, Jethro,” Ernesto said. “Considering you two never got along very well. But yes, I also think father is happier with the professor. He’s good for him.” The other Ernesto nodded.

“I’m kind of worried about Fink, too,” Darrell murmured, not looking at the rest of the robots. “What she said about having to deal with their side of it by herself was… well. You know.” His siblings silently nodded.

“Oh, good evening, everyone! Jethro, how are you? Any damage from your fall?”

They turned to see Mr. Logic giving them a friendly wave on his way out of the bodega, shopping bag in hand.

“I AM JETHRO?”

“Oh. Are you a different Jethro then? One of you fell down there last night, you see.” Mr. Logic pointed ahead to what looked a lot like a manhole, now surrounded by a small orange-and-white barrier. “Mr. Gar felt very bad about it. He says he should have fixed that wobbling lid a long time ago. Well, please pass my best to the Jethro that fell.”

He made to go while the cogs in seven desolate robotic heads started to turn.

“Mr. Logic!”

“Brother!”

“I AM JETHRO!”

“Mikayyyyyyyyla!”

“Mr. Brother!”

“Wait!”

“Stop!”

Mr. Logic suddenly found him surrounded by a wide-eyed crowd. Shannon grabbed the bag from his hands and Jethro tried to hug his knees with such force that the surprised robot ended up plopping on top of Jethro’s dome.

“What...”

“Mr. Brother,” Raymond said tearfully, “was Jethro here yesterday? Did he have a lilypad on his head?”

“Brother? Oh, my. Well. As a matter of fact, he did, after we fished him out of the lake.”

“Which lake! Maybe we can still make it!” Shannon enthused.

“Well. The Lakewood tree lake. The one below this plaza.”

The robots stared at each other. _Of course_ it was that simple.

“Mr. Logic,” Darrell took his hands next. “Tell us everything.”

“Erm. That’s all, really. He fell down that hole, I called Mr. Gar, we fished him out, and he went home. It was around ten. It was a good thing that Mr. Gar and KO were working late and I was on my way to see them, otherwise Jethro might have stayed down there until this morning.”

“I AM JETHRO?”

“Yes, you put something in the lockers. What?” He added after seeing the empty looks. “The bodega rents out lockers. They’re out back.” Everyone gasped.

“Are there cameras there? Do you know which locker Jethro used?”

“No, but let’s go see. Come on,” he said and Jethro transported him triumphantly on his dome to the back of the bodega, followed by everyone else.

And there, lo and behold, only one locker was taken on the whole of the lowest row, and everyone agreed unanimously that the vertically underprivileged Jethro would have chosen that one.

“Alright then. Time to negotiate a sizable donation with Mr. Gar, too,” Ernesto said, arranged his tophat aggressively and made to go.

“Oh? How… refreshingly noble. May I inquire why?”

“We don’t know the combination and we need, er, what’s inside immediately,” Raymond explained.

“Why?” Mr. Logic looked at them suspiciously. “Is it about to explode? Is this another plan of Lord Boxman’s to attack the plaza and its residents?”

“No, no, Mr. Logic, nothing like that,” the other Ernesto said and Mr. Logic’s glare only intensified. “It’s of sentimental value.”

“You will forgive me if I do not take you on your word.”

“Dearest brother,” Raymond suddenly turned on the charm and roses, went down on one knee, and hopped in to the rescue, to Mr. Logic’s wide-eyed surprise. “I know we have never been very close, but you must know the truth. Our beloved fathers’ engagement rings are inside. Stepfather has finally decided it is time to take this most important and responsible step in a person’s life and ask our father for his, er, talons in marriage. Please, we implore you, let bygones be bygones and help us unite these two evil hearts in unholy matrimony!” 

Mr. Logic stared, equally dumbfounded by the news and by their delivery.

“ _Woooooooow_ ,” he finally managed with a blossoming grin. “You have got to, as they say, be _kidding_! Is this really true?” He looked around at the circle of robots.

“It will be, if we manage to get him the rings in time,” Shannon confirmed while everyone else nodded.

“This is such amazing news! I am very happy for Lord Boxman, indeed. Oh, I do hope he finally finds true happiness!”

“Will you help us then?” Raymond asked, still on one knee, turning up the roses and sparkling to max.

“Oh. Yes. It’s 2501.”

“???” 

“It’s Jethro’s serial number. It was written on a small plate behind his exhaust pipe. It’s the only logical combination, since he mentioned that the Ernesto who was with him had the same serial number. Then he too would be able to guess the combination if necessary.”

“!!!”

“You didn’t realize that right away?” Mr. Logic asked slightly awkwardly in the stunned silence that followed.

Then, seven robots suddenly unfroze and lunged for the locker. After a minute of fighting and finger-slapping, the combination was collectively entered, the locker door swung open, and on the floor of the big locker...

... _were the rings_.

The cheer carried all the way to the huge oval shape that was slowly descending over the Boxmore parking lot. Mr. Logic had just enough time to shout “Good luck! Invite us to the wedding!” before he was dropped from Jethro’s dome as the robots all sprinted off to Boxmore.

\---

“I don’t know, PV,” Boxman said unenthusiastically. “I really don’t feel like going anywhere. I… I was hoping to see the whole family today,” he sighed. “Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy to see Ernesto, Jethro and Mikayla. But ever since Darrell’s Acres and Shannon and Raymond’s careers took off, I hardly ever see those three. And Fink just got here, too.”

“What if I told you the whole family _will_ be there?”

“Why aren’t they here now?” He asked, fidgeting and not looking up. “They don’t even pick up my calls anymore. And they didn’t tell me anything about their glitch. I don’t understand…”

Fink and Venomous exchanged a look. This was definitely _not_ optimal mood for a proposal.

“Ok, what if I let you in on a secret?” Fink said and sat on the arm of the sofa where Boxman was, with his phone still in hand. “They, that is to say, _we all_ , have been very busy today arranging something. Something really cool and important.”

“Ah. I see.” He said and bit his lip, looking even sadder. “Well. I suppose that family dinners aren’t very cool. Probably not all that important either, when you’re young.”

“Boxy, no…” Venomous whispered and sat next to him, one arm over his shoulders. He had meant for the day to be special and had no idea how it had all glitched so completely.

“Yeah, it’s not like that,” Fink agreed. “Actually, Boss asked us to do it.”

“What,” Venomous hissed and glared at her over Boxman’s green tuft.

“Huh!?” Boxman looked up at her, then back at the other man. “PV? Why?”

“Well, it’s almost 8:30,” Fink chimed in and waved towards the door. “Why don’t you _follow. Boss. out._ and see?”

After an intense glare from Fink, Venomous sighed in resignation, popped his back once and then swept Boxman up, bridal style. Boxman giggled despite himself, and graciously allowed himself to be carried outside, without protest this time. 

After rolling her eyes hard, Fink crossed her fingers and followed. Some of the passing robots gave her the thumbs-up. There hadn’t been any calls or secret messages from any of the ones she had left at the train station, and while that, combined with the thumbs-up, was supposed to be a good sign in theory, she suspected something _must have_ gone awry. Hopefully, something survivable. 

—-

Just beyond the line of trees in front of Boxmore, an enormous silver shape, almost dwarfing the factory, was descending slowly. Its surface was reflecting the lights of the factory and of the fading sunset and dispersing them into small rainbows. Boxman’s eyes became impossibly large and shiny at the sight as he hopped down from Venomous’s arms and took a mesmerized step forward, and then another, and then he just ran towards the impressive aircraft that was gently landing.

“Cob’s cornflower fields, the captain really managed it,” Fink mumbled with enormous relief.

“Wow. I didn’t realize these things were so huge,” Venomous said, quite wide-eyed himself. Then he looked at Fink. “How did you do that?”

“Anything to get you hitched, Boss,” Fink laughed and stuck out her tongue at him and his indignant look.

“PV! Look! It’s a blimp! A real, working original! Look at its envelope! That’s a helium model! It’s so beautiful! Ooooh, and it has open deck! Aaaah, and look at those engines!” Boxman was hopping in place, looking up and ranting about the airship’s engine specs when Venomous and Fink caught up with him.

“So I take it, you like it?” Venomous asked, smiling at the sight Boxman made, all blushy and jumping and excited.

“It’s so beautiful! I love blimps! I even used to have a blimp model when I was a little lad!” And then his excitement seemed to cool down. “I just wish everyone else were here…”

“Daddddyyyyyyy!!!” Came a shrill cry from the other side of the landing aircraft, and a cowboy Darrell rounded the nose of its gondola at high speed.

“Dad! We’re here!” Shannon was next, hugging Mikayla.

“Coach! Sorry we’re late!” Raymond waved his arms and waited for a moment for the two Ernestos and Jethro to catch up. “Actually no, we’re just on time!”

“Children!” Boxman bounced happily and was then buried under a huge pile of robotic hugs. Venomous and Fink looked on, mostly amused and a little touched.

Behind them, the plank of the enormous aircraft descended and a tall fox-tailed man dressed in uniform stepped down to greet them. He politely waited for the family reunion to die down a bit before he coughed to attract their attention.

“Good evening! I’m captain Goodfellow of the LED’s heritage airship, St. John. Welcome aboard!”

“St. _John_?” Venomous stared at Fink, completely astonished. She shrugged happily, just as surprised as him. Not that she’d admit it.

“St. John!?” Boxman said and looked between his children and the captain and Venomous. “PV! PV, that’s my civvie name! John! How-how did you manage to arrange this!?”

“We helped!” Fink chimed in, before her beloved boss could do anything drastic, such as tell the truth. She also threw his way a warning glare, for good measure.

“What are we waiting for! Let’s get on!” Boxman chirped and herded all his kids on board, followed by the Venomouses.

And there, it turned out, were more surprises to be had, for Boxman as well as for the alleged organizers. When the guests climbed on board, a rather romantic tune to the melody of “Two of hearts” started to play, courtesy of Ray & the Monds in evening tuxes, snugly arranged on a small bandstand to one side of the open deck. 

The rest of the space was decorated in purple and green, with an equally well-decorated dining table on one end, a waiter, another man in uniform, and of course, the captain himself. Boxman and Venomous looked at each other wide-eyed.

“Ok, Boxy, full disclosure. This was all Fink and the kids. I… I don’t even know how they managed all of this,” he said and gestured around, feeling slightly overwhelmed. Fink quietly facepalmed in the background.

“Oh, PV…” Boxman just said in answer, rather overwhelmed himself, and pulled him down for a kiss. “It’s perfect. We have the best kids!”

“Yes, we do,” Venomous smiled back and kissed him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! Big chapter, a lot of stuff happened, Mr. Logic saved the day! As always, I'd love to hear what parts stuck with you, and then be amazed how they were absolutely not the ones I intended. XD So comments are welcome!


	7. The proposal

An hour after St. John had lifted off, the delicious dinner served on the open deck had been polished off and a small dance had been had to the music Ray & the Monds provided. The captain took stock of the passengers' mood and decided it was time for some more romance, so he gave order for all the lights other than the mandatory strobe one on the bottom to be dimmed, so that everyone could fully enjoy the view of nighttime Lakewood.

In the darkness, the city expanded like a real lake of glittering golden dots below them. Fink, the robots and their father lined up at the safety railing and excitedly pointed to Boxmore and other landmarks they could recognize, took pictures, or just enjoyed the view of the emerald sky and the refreshing feeling of the night breeze. Ray & the Monds went on playing something soothing and the light of the just risen broken moon was turning everything surreal, dreamy and perfectly charming.

At some point, Venomous realized he had been staring at the excited and simply radiant Boxman for at least fifteen minutes. Right. He took a deep breath, got up from his chair and pulled Fink discreetly aside.

“Cob it, Fink, you were right.” He said under his breath. “The moment is never going to get more perfect than this. I have to propose _now_. If I don’t do it now, I never will. Do you actually have the rings, or should I make do?”

“I’m appalled, Boss, appalled. They’ve never left my sight for _a moment_ ,” Fink answered like a proper villain, giving silent thanks to the Almighty Cornfield and all its inhabitants and an equally silent gesture to Jethro, who had reclaimed his rights as a ring-bearer at the bodega. He inconspicuously rolled under the table and handed her the tiny box, which she grabbed and presented to Venomous with a gesture as smooth as Cob’s silky hair.

Venomous took another deep breath, trying to get himself together, while Fink ran off to the captain and urgently whispered to him. Goodfellow smiled conspiratorially and gave her the thumbs up.

“Oh,” Boxman said when a few of the lights started to turn back on. “Is it time to land already?”

“Not yet,” Venomous said and stepped close to him, suddenly finding out he had forgotten all versions of the speech he had been preparing for weeks now, listing all the reasons why Boxman should marry him, and all the great times they had, and all the ways in which they… But nevermind. “I… I need to say something first.”

“Hm?” Boxman hummed, looking suspiciously around at the circle of shiny-, starry- and heart-eyed robotic and organic kids. “What is it, PV?”

“Well… I don’t know about you, but this reminds me a lot of our first date,” Venomous found himself saying. “Only, of course, your desk was a lot smaller, and our families weren’t there, and we were recently exploded, but… well, you get it.” He managed to stop himself from ranting at the sight of Boxman’s grin.

“So, I, I made you a _business proposal_ that night,” he went on before he could lose the remains of his cool completely. Then he took the box out of his pocket.

“Oh hello, what’s that?” Boxman asked, pointing at it.

“I want to make you another kind of proposal tonight,” Venomous said simply and opened the box. 

Boxman’s eyes went unbelievably big and shiny.

“PV… is that… are you…”

“I love… absolutely everything about you, Boxman. And I want to spend the rest of my life being evil with you. I want us to be partners in crime and in life. So I’m asking… you to marry me.” He finished, breathless and terrified, and waited for the answer.

Boxman, who had tears running down his cheeks by then, sniffed loudly and reached out.

“Sure thing,” he managed as he held the other side of the box.

They lasted a whole of three seconds before they both broke down in tears and hugged each other and mumbled unintelligible, adoring, panicked, sappy things into each other’s ears, almost drowned out by the chorus of cheers and sobs and encouragements from their ecstatic children.

“I was so afraid you’d say no, Boxy,” Venomous whispered hoarsely as he fumbled for the ring with the pink nanoglorbs and for Boxman’s hand. “I was afraid it was too much to ask after everything else you’ve always given me.”

“I was so afraid to ask, too, PV,” Boxman said and also reached out for the rings and Venomous’s hand. “You always keep apologizing for what happened and I was so afraid I might be forcing it on you if I so much as suggested getting married.”

“Oh, Cob,” Venomous said with a laugh and entwined their ringed hands together. “The children are right, we _are_ complete disasters.”

“And now we have the rest of our lives to be disastrous and evil together,” Boxman said. “Oh, PV, I can’t believe you really want this!”

“Of course _I_ do. I can’t believe _you_ do too.” He rubbed Boxman’s cheeks dry. “And I’ll do better, Boxy, I promise. I won’t let you down again.”

“Oh, PV, I love you so much...”

“I love you too, Boxy...”

-

In the mostly robotic background, Fink chugged an entire glass of apple cider and leaned on Darrell, weak with relief.

“It happened! It finally happened! I can’t believe it happened! I seriously didn’t think I’d live to see the day!”

“There-there,” Darrell patted her shoulder. “Just think how much more _fun_ we’re going to have until the actual wedding happens,” he added.

“Oh Cob’s buttered popcorn,” she moaned. “You couldn’t let me have this for five corny minutes, couldn’t you.”

“It’s alright, next time-”

“What do you mean, _next time_!!!” Fink hissed at Ernesto, who had just joined them.

“Oops, he-heh,” he scratched his tophat in embarrassment. “I meant, when our fathers _are being silly again_ before the wedding, at least there won’t be The Glitch to get in the way. Any and all trouble will be entirely their own doing.”

“Oh. We got found out, then, did we?” Darrell winced.

“Yup. Father almost decommissioned me for not telling him about The Glitch. Now he thinks we consider him too senile to help around his own factory. It was quite the scene. And all thanks to _that traitor_ ,” he added and glared daggers and electric drills at Mikayla. “As if ditching me alone with the police in that fountain wasn’t enough.”

“Mikayla! Mikayla Mikayla Mikayla!” Mikayla said defensively, perking up from her spot in a tray of canapés. 

“That’s your story and you’re sticking to it, huh?” Ernesto glared over his crossed arms.

“Mikayyyyyla!”

While the argument heated up, Darrell poked Fink shyly.

“Hey Fink… You know… You’re always welcome to, er… tell us stuff. And come visit. And vent and all that,” he fidgeted awkwardly. “You always were, but… just thought I’d say it again. Seeing how we’re going to be siblings now.”

“Acorn to that!” Fink said and toasted him with another glass of apple cider. “And thanks,” she added quietly. “I… probably should have taken you up on that sooner.”

“Awww,” Darrell couldn’t resist, and picked her up in a bone-crunching hug. She, of course, squeaked indignantly and wriggled without much actual zeal.

-

Nearby, Captain Goodfellow and Raymond were also conspiring.

“You guys are really very good,” Captain Goodfellow said and took Raymond’s business card, swapping it for his own. “Can I maybe hire you for my wedding?”

“Oh, captain, please,” Raymond waved a hand dismissively. “We’ll play for free. It’s the least I could do. Just tell me the place and time.”

“And if you need someone to liven up the event, I’m game, too!” Shannon chirped in. “Oh, and while you’re at it, toss us that video you made of the proposal.”

“Sure, sure. And thanks, I’ll talk to my fiancée. She was so disappointed she missed all this.”

“I AM JETHRO! I AM JETHRO?”

“Sorry, son, what was that?”

“He wants to know who’s taking whose name after the wedding.” Then Shannon had a thought. “Oh, wow! Do you think we’ll need to become Venomouses now?”

“We’re not doing that,” Goodfellow answered with a laugh. “Why don’t you ask your fathers? Maybe they haven’t even thought about it. They didn’t seem very… err… well, I can see why you were calling them disaster dads.”

“Hm, actually, sister, _Shannon Venomous_ has a pretty sweet ring to it. And it goes well with your TV persona.”

“Right!?” She squealed. “Maybe we can come to an arrangement with our dear new stepdaddy!”

“I AM JETHRO?”

“I’d love to come to the wedding, son. But it’s up to your fathers to decide who gets to attend.”

“Eh-heh-heh,” Raymond laughed nervously. “Or not...” Then, at the look he got, he explained. “Well, by now, we’ve invited the captain and his fiancée, Mr. Logic, I assume together with Mr. Gar and his family, Vormulax, three policemen, the manager of the Bot’s Burrow and the train station master, all of the latter probably with plus ones.”

“Oooh boy, are our dads going to be surprised,” Shannon whistled.

“Hey everyone! Come here!” Boxman shouted and waved them closer. “Let’s take a picture! I need it for my mantelpiece collection!”

Everyone trooped over and handed their phones to the good captain, who took as many pictures as requested without complaining one bit.

\---

At the same time next day, under the big framed family picture from the airship, Boxman was rolling on the sofa and laughing helplessly. Venomous, sitting next to him with an untouched glass of apple cider, stared at the TV screen and looked torn between being impressed and dying from second-hand embarrassment. 

“That was… _wow_ ,” was all he managed to say.

“I can’t believe they forgot they could download their memories manually from the antennas,” Boxman wheezed. “So they not only lost your rings, but went all over the city looking for them the next day! And Fink! She almost scrapped them!”

“ _Our_ rings,” Venomous said and touched the engagement ring on his finger on reflex. Having the small metal band there was a very new and unexpectedly reassuring feeling. “Where did you even get these files?”

“I downloaded them from the antenna backlogs before we left Boxmore this morning,” Boxman wiped his wet cheeks. “You know, like they should have. I wanted to check if something serious hadn’t happened after all, and look what I found.” He cackled some more, taking his phone out. “I should call Ernesto and have him download everyone’s memories properly before Darrell, Shannon and Raymond leave.” 

“At least that explains the wedding invitation shortlist Raymond emailed me this afternoon,” he commented still slightly dazed. “And I was wrecking my brain _why_ in Cob’s mighty ripe green creation I should invite _Foxtail’s brother_ and his admiral fiancée, of all people.”

“That was _Foxtail’s brother_?” Boxman roared in a renewed fit of laughter. Venomous rolled his eyes a bit, left the cider and reached over to rub his back soothingly, before the love of his life choked.

In only a few short minutes, Boxman calmed down enough to call Ernesto and chew him a bit more, before explaining how to restore everyone’s lost data. Venomous just sat next to him and looked contemplatively at the now empty TV screen.

“So the robot children never really… avoided me,” he said quietly when Boxman finally hung up.

“They don’t hate you, PV,” he said as he put his phone back in his pocket and tried to become more serious. “I’ve been telling you that all along. Did you see how upset Jethro was?”

“Upsetting them is not something that cheers me up particularly,” Venomous mumbled defensively and then admitted, “but yes, he was. They all really, really want us to be together. It was all very… touching.”

“It was hilarious, you mean,” Boxman giggled. “I really need to have a good long chat with Ernesto next time. All of this was completely avoidable.”

“Hm… and maybe with Mr. Logic, too?”

Boxman shrunk just a tiny little bit. Venomous put an arm over his shoulders and rubbed them reassuringly until a tiny “maaaybe” escaped the other man reluctantly.

“And I should probably have a good, long talk with Fink and try to make some amends,” Venomous sighed, looking guilty. “I didn’t realize how hard all of this was on her.”

“I’ll be sure to thank her,” Boxman said and finally managed to sit fully upright. He gave Venomous an evil sidelong look. “Hey, did you really cry for me at the sight of oranges?”

“I… She… They...” Venomous stammered and blushed furiously, looking away. “It was a very _adorable_ orange, I’ll have you know,” he mumbled.

“Uh-huh. Alright. I’ll be sure to ask Fink for _her_ version, then,” Boxman said nonchalantly and hopped off the sofa, pulling out his phone demonstratively.

“No! Boxy, no!”

“Boxy, _yesss_.”

Venomous sprung from the sofa and after a chase around the small cabin, followed Boxman at high speed into the bedroom, where all thoughts of Fink, the robot kids, oranges and The Glitch were promptly forgotten. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Any and all comments are welcome! Keyboard smashes are welcome! Dinner menus and emoji are welcome! All of us suckers for a happy end should stick together! XD
> 
> And don't forget to support Goosie and her wonderful comic~ https://goosieboosie.tumblr.com/post/188006219027


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